《The Cultivation System》 World End Chapter 1 The Cultivation System Chapter 1: World End I¡¯ve always felt different. Everyone''s world was based on repeating the same things: to work, eat, sleep, and repeat. Yet, I always found that world boring. Hence, I had no goals, no ambition, no life¡­ until today. The news reporter described the end of the world in huge detail while I sat there completely at peace knowing that life is meaningless; knowing that an asteroid the size of our moon will hit the earth in only a few minutes; knowing that I¡¯m more worried about the fact I never finished my latest book. ¡°I hate cliff-hangers,¡±I muttered to myself. ¡°Now is the time to say goodbye to your loved ones and hold your heads high. We all face this together. This is Sarah, signing off, for the last time.¡± The TV switched to a 60-second count down. I laughed, ¡°even at the end of the world there''s a deadline. Bloody typical!¡± I look down at my phone to see if anyone has called or messaged but unsurprisingly there are no messages. My parents are gone and I have no friends so to speak of. As I hit the lock screen, I notice the calm on my eyes reflecting off the darkened screen. A loud notice from the TV interrupts my thoughts: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 I instinctively tense up expecting the worst. ¡­ A few seconds pass and I have yet to feel anything. As I open my eyes there is an explosion ¨C no, that¡¯s not quite the correct description. Imagine a nuke but thousands going off at the same time. That¡¯s the sound I hear. I feel my eardrums burst in seconds - the pain is enough for me to scream and drop to my knees. I grab my eyes to try and stop the pain and as I look back at my hands they¡¯re covered in blood. Then everything goes black. ¡°Finally, I can complete my experiment. 8 billion souls for me to harvest! This should let me ascend to greater heights than ever before,¡± a loud booming voice echoes as my mind shifts back into gear. I try to open my eyes but notice I don¡¯t have any. Wait,then how am I hearing? How am I thinking? This too weird... ¡°Oh, what do we have here? 7 of you are still aware - what rare talent!¡±Hebooms and starts laughing. The noise is deafening.Wait, I¡¯m hearing him in my soul, not through my ears ¨C that¡¯s so weird! ¡°Oh we have a smart one, don''t we? Well since I can¡¯t consume self-aware souls, I¡¯ll give you 7 a chance to fight against the heavens and your fates. Look for me if you want revenge - I do love a classic story of revenge - or if you want to thank me, I guess that¡¯s fine too, kind of boring, but fine. Since you¡¯re the smart one in the group I¡¯ll let you pick first.¡± I feel a bolt of lightning shoot through my mind and a popup window appears in my mind¡¯s ¡°eye¡±.
Welcome to Immortal King Soul Consumer¡¯s Shop
Points to Spend: 1500
Systems
Stats
Items
AI Chips
Elements
Rebirth
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°Please select a category¡± a robotic voice echoes in my head. This feels like something straight out of my books¡­ am I dreaming? Come on, Adam snap out of it. Let¡¯s check out the systems first.
Systems
500p - Levelling system ¨C Increase your power with EXP gained by crafting, leveling, and getting achievements. Use EXP to increase your base level or skills. This is a fast, yet dangerous, way to increase power (please be aware that later levels will increase at a slower rate).
300p - Murder System ¨C increase your power by killing. The more innocent the victim the greater the power (please be aware that this path will lead to insanity).
200p ¨C Crafting system ¨C automate the crafting process for anything.
400p ¨C Hero System ¨C Save people, help people, kill the demon lord, do I really need to explain this one? *YAWN*
500p ¨C Cultivation system ¨C this system helps you along your journey to godhood. Each realm will unlock features within the system (please note this system comes with a shop).
I¡¯m tempted to choose the leveling system - it reminds me of all the video games I''ve played- but everyone knows that every RPG takes weeks to level if not months!Murder seems a bit too dark and will attract attention too quickly. Crafting seems helpful but no power gain.Who wants to be a hero? HAHAHA. Cultivation system? I''ve read a few books about cultivation¡­ and becoming immortal and god-like does sound fun! Wait, I have 1500 points! Why don¡¯t I mix the crafting system and the cultivation system? Yes, I¡¯ll do that. Okay, that leaves me with 800 points - let¡¯s purchase the system first. ¡°Crafting system purchased.¡± ¡°Cultivation system purchased.¡± ¡°Crafting system has been implemented into the cultivation system, Cultivation system updating: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Complete.¡± Perfect, now let¡¯s look at the stats.
Stats
Name: Adam Lockworth
Strength ¨C 7
Agility ¨C 12
¡°Alert: intelligence has met the hidden condition and opened sub-categories.¡±
Intelligence ¨C 15 Spiritual Sense ¨C 0
Endurance 8
¡°1 stat point can be bought with 10p,¡± the computer voice echoes. Okay, let¡¯s use 200p for some stats. Looks like 10 is the average.
Stats
Name: Adam Lockworth
Strength ¨C 10
¡°Alert: agility has met the hidden condition and opened sub-categories.¡±
Agility ¨C 15 Hyperfocus ¨C 5
¡°Alert: intelligence has met the hidden condition and opened sub-categories.¡±
Intelligence ¨C 17 Spiritual Sense ¨C 5
Endurance 10
¡°Purchase Complete.¡± ¡°Stats Updated.¡± Okay, that leaves me with 600p left. I¡¯ll skip the items and go straight for the elements.
Elements
100 points ¨C Wind basic comprehension
100 points ¨C Earth basic comprehension
100 points ¨C Fire basic comprehension
100 points ¨C Water basic comprehension
200 points ¨C Lightning basic comprehension
300 points ¨C gravity basic comprehension
300 points - Space and Time hint of comprehension
I have to go for lightning as well as space and time - there are just too many benefits! Purchase! ¡°Lightning basic comprehension purchased.¡± ¡°Space and Time hint of comprehension purchased.¡± Okay, that¡¯s enough for power. That leaves me with¡­ 100p for my rebirth.
Rebirth
1000 points rebirth in the immortal realms under an immortal king
900 points rebirth in the immortal realms under an immortal knight
800 points rebirth in the immortal realms under a sect/Clan
700 points rebirth in the mortal realms under a high ranking sect
600 points rebirth in mortal realms under a monarch a disciple
500 points rebirth in mortal realms under a normal cultivation family
400 points rebirth in mortal realms under a mortal king
300 points rebirth in mortal realms under a normal family
200 points rebirth in mortal realms as an only child in normal household
100 points rebirth in mortal realms as an orphan
F***! I wasted my points! I¡¯m going to have to start as an orphan alone again. What did I expect?! At least this seems interesting; it¡¯s finally something I¡¯m truly excited about! PURCHASE! ¡°Purchase complete. Mortal realm orphan selected. Rebirth in 5 seconds,¡± the computer voice echoed. ¡°What an interesting young pup you are! I expect a lot from you. Test my system for me and I¡¯ll be back for results.¡± I heard the booming voice again. At least now I know his name: Immortal King Soul Consumer. What a name.. or title! Just you wait, Immortal King. I¡¯ll be back, not for revenge or thanks, but for fun! As my I feel my mind slipping away from me, I hear a final laugh from the immortal king. Rebirth Chapter 2 What¡¯s that bright white light? Oh my god, this so clich¨¦! I have read about being reborn into another world, and the light at the end of the tunnel is you being born again, but I never believed it. ¡°That¡¯s weird, don¡¯t babies usually cry after birth?¡± I hear an old man''s voice ask in a questioning tone. Oh shit, they do, don¡¯t they? I try to open my eyes but they feel too heavy. As I finally manage to pry my eyes open, the lights come flooding in. The pain makes me cry after a few seconds, but I calm myself down. I can see a dirty alleyway as I look around, and I notice everything looks like it¡¯s from the medieval era. Lots of stone everywhere and paths made of just dirt and waste that has been mixed and trodden down. As I¡¯m looking around I notice that I¡¯m being held by someone. An old man at least 100 years old, with wrinkles everywhere and aged white air. Somehow his dark blue eyes show radiate so much youth. I notice that he isn¡¯t looking at me directly but at the ground where a young woman is laying down. She is covered in filth; it looks like she been on the streets for years. Is that supposed to be my mum? Please don¡¯t tell me that my choices are what led to this woman¡¯s death! Or, was she going to have a kid anyway? Is this my fault? I hear a loud sigh that brings my focus back to the old man. He stares at me now. ¡°You are a smart one aren¡¯t you? Never seen a baby look around before. Well, my name is Thomas, not that you will remember. The question is, what should I name you?¡± His eyes glaze over, and after a few seconds he snaps back and says:Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°Adam, that will be your name. Anyway, let us say goodbye to your mother and take you to my orphanage.¡± Looks like everything that happened wasn¡¯t a dream! I am really going to an orphanage. Damn, being in a baby¡¯s body is going to be so boring! Plus, I''m going to have to wait for at least 3 ¨C 4 years before I can even get away with being an average genius. Wait, I understand the language - are they speaking English? I¡¯d be nicely convenient if they are¡­ hopefully, the written language is English too to make my life even easier. Damn, I feel so tired¡­.. Okay, so it has been a week since I got here. They only have 4 other kids, and we all share a room. We seem to be a church of some kind, and the old man, think his name was Thomas, seems to be a priest. One of the older boys here seems to be his apprentice gauging by how he¡¯s always running around. I have been finding it amusing to just sit, watch everything, and learn. One of the older girls, Jess, has been looking after me. She seems nice but also strict. She won''t let me leave her side. Not that I could if I wanted to; crawling is way harder than it seems! I feel my body get picked up. I look around to see that Jess is the one carrying me. We are traveling through the main church, with its high ceilings and wooden benches. I stare at the stained glass depicting a mighty dragon fighting a lone man. Due to the glass''s age, the picture is blurry, but I can make out a white light surrounding the lone man. I try making a waving motion to get Jess to let me look closer, but she ignores me. At least this isn¡¯t a normal church from my time; I can get behind a religion that focuses on fighting dragons. As we travel through the back of the church, we enter the kitchen: there is a large wooden table in the middle of the room with 8 chairs around it. It looks like it has been set for dinner. Jess sits on a chair, and I suddenly realize she is going to be the one feeding me. I am a grown arse man getting fed by 15-year-old! This isn¡¯t right! I''m just glad they have cow¡¯s milk¡­ imagine if it was dragon¡¯s milk! Though drinking dragon milk wouldn''t be so bad on second thought. After being fed, I feel sleepy again slowly drift off. 5 years later Chapter 3 ¡°Adam? Where are you?¡± I hear Jess shouting. I continue to ignore her while trying to meditate. I have been trying to feel KI around me. I''ve read a few books in the church¡¯s library about KI, but there is very little known in this tiny town. I would call it a village, but I''ve been told repeatedly that villages don¡¯t have a church, which is supposed to be a big deal. On a child¡¯s 10th birthday, they go to the main city to be tested for a core, which tells them their talent, elemental affinities, and level of sensitivity towards KI. Talent was explained by Andrew as something everyone is born with, from White (meaning nothing) to Black (meaning highest talent). Talent determines how well you can comprehend and how quickly you can absorb KI. Elemental affinities are how easy you can influence that element with your KI. No one has ever had more than one which makes me worry about standing out as I have 2. KI sense, which I take to mean spiritual sense, is something you train over time. The 10th birthday is the date used for testing since this is the age when your core is fully developed, so almost everyone starts with a 1. Now the reason I am trying to sense KI early is because of the notification I got on my 3rd birthday:
Cultivation System (all tabs are locked till First core is formed)
Stats
Shop
Crafting System
System Quest
Unlock Core before 10th birthday to get 500p to spend in the shop. Failure to complete this quest will result in a penalty of 500p. Please note if your point balance becomes negative you will be punished.
When I saw the notification, I panicked. I don¡¯t know of any way to form a core, and this village -sorry, town - is in the middle of nowhere, so I have been meditating, as they did in my old books, hoping that I would be able to sense the KI to form my first core. I have found out, from reading the little information that I have, that the first 3 stages of cultivation are:If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. -KI Building: this is where the core takes the outside KI and floods your body with it, making it stronger. There are nine levels and levelling up depends on talent. The average time for medium talent is 5 years, good talent 3, amazing talent 1, and genius 5 months. -Core Refining: when your core first forms at 10 years old, it is white. Similarly to KI building, there are also 9 levels and at the final level, the core is white with black specs. As the levels progress, you learn to use the KI outside of your body, with techniques similar to what certain wind affinities can achieve. -Soul Refining: this part of the book was damaged. I could only seem to put together bits and pieces, but this seems to be combing your soul with your core. There were also illustrations of men and women flying. I can''t wait to be able to fly! The sky won¡¯t even be my limit; this world will be mine one day. ¡°Adam you look so silly! Just sitting there with your eyes closed making humming noises!¡± Giggled Jess. ¡°Shhhhh,¡± I hiss. I then felt myself being picked up -I hate being picked up. I am a grown arse man! ¡°Put me down Jess, please!¡± I say with the cutest face I can pull, staring into her blue eyes and her dirty-blonde hair. Her face is a bit chubby for a 15-year-old, but her eyes make up for it. They instantly show anyone the bubbly attitude she within when combined with the constant smile on her face. She puts me down and says, ¡°go on then, you can walk. We¡¯re heading to grandpa Andrew¡¯s office.¡± ¡°What does that old man want now? He never has time for us, so why is he bothering me now? I''m busy,¡± I groan. Jess starts laughing and with half-serious eyes, she says ¡°don¡¯t call him an old man or he¡¯ll get stressed out again.¡± I promptly shut my mouth and rub my eyes, butbloody old man thinks he can do what he wants because I''m in this body - just wait ¡®till I''m older, old man! I look up at Jess as we walk. I use my cute face that seems to work at any time and say ¡°Jess, when can we go to village Liberty? You¡¯ve been promising for ages!¡± ¡°Hahaha, you just don¡¯t give up do you, Adam? I will ask grandpa if I can take you tomorrow, but you have to be on your best behaviour. There are some bad people around,¡± she says with a strict voice while pointing at me. ¡°I promise!¡± I shout while running up to her and hugging her leg.I have her wrapped around my finger. As we walk, I see Kyle heading towards us. His robes, his short black hair, and his defined face make him look like a hero, juxtaposing with his bug-eyed glasses. They don¡¯t suit his face at all. It always makes me smile when I see them ¨C it¡¯s like seeing a bodybuilder wearing geek glasses. It just doesn¡¯t work. ¡°There are you two, The Father has been waiting for a while now.¡± He says in a disapproving voice. ¡°It took me forever to find this rascal! He was hiding away doing that weird humming thing again,¡± Jess moans at him. ¡°Hey little guy, you okay? If you wanna talk about anything, I''m always here. You don¡¯t need to do weird stuff by yourself,¡± his tone changes while speaking to me, with his voice switching to the role of a caring older brother. ¡°I am fine, Kyle. I just like relaxing my body, okay? Nothing to worry about,¡± I say while giving him a big smile. ¡°Brother Kyle,¡± he gently reminds me. Apparently, if you serve as a church mortal or cultivator, you must be called by the title you have. It shows great disrespect to ignore church titles. Pompous ass, you haven¡¯t even gone through your holy order yet. The holy order is a test where the Immortal King sense that has been placed into every church scans your body and mind to confirm whether you are a true believer. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s hurry!¡± Jess shouts while jogging. History Lesson ¡°Adam, my boy, I hear you¡¯ve been humming to yourself again. Be careful or everyone will think you¡¯re going crazy unless you are crazy, then do as you wish.¡± Andrew chuckles at his own joke. ¡°Jess, you can leave now. It is time for me to start young Adam here on his history lesson. Make sure he comes here every day at this time for his lessons. It is time he learns about the outside worlds¡± Andrew explains. ¡°Okay Grandpa, will do,¡± Jess says as she walks out the door. I have only been in the old man¡¯s study a few times. For a priest he does seem to have a lot of stuff - I always thought churches were meant to be empty, undecorated spaces, but he has a solid oak desk with golden woven curtains covering the double doors that lead to the balcony. As I look around the room, I hear a loud clap that makes me jump and focus back on Andrew. ¡°I swear you have the attention span of a 5-year-old! Oh, you are 5,¡± he chuckled, ¡°anyway, let us begin. I am going to cover this town, the nearest city, the continent as a whole, and the 3 main factions. So, this town is called Meadow Centre. A town is classified as 5,000 or more people living in an area, plus a blacksmith, tailor, Medica, town hall, and a church. We have all those and a few extra shops here and there. A town is managed by a cultivator over the age of 30 that is still in the KI stage. Our town lord is, believe it or not, me. I am a priest first, but after a beast horde attacked 5 years ago, no one has come and replaced the old lord. Since I am a KI refiner of the first stage, I qualify, though not by much, so the town people voted me in.¡± He momentarily pauses. ¡°Hold your questions ¡®till the end! I can see you¡¯re going to burst!¡± He shouts, then resumes the lesson, ¡°the closest city is called Lightridge. Cities have the same requirements as towns but with much higher populations. They also have more cultivators running around, so they can be a dangerous place. I have only been to a city once before, so I can not tell you much, but I do know that a city lord has at least reached the core refiner stage. The continent we are on is called Flatedge; one side borders the sea while the other hangs over a ledge so steep you can not see the bottom at all. The people are split into 3 factions: the light sects, the dark sects, and the neutral sects. I do not like to give the titles good and evil to light nor dark, as a dark assassin killing a cruel city lord could be called justice. All I am saying is that light sects plot to kill, while the dark sects kill openly or in the shadows, but their motives never come down to politics. Neutral sects have a bit of everything, though when the light and dark go to war they stay out of it. No one pushes the neutral sect as they are the balance of this world. Now to my area of expertise: churches. You might find this funny but only 2 of the stages of cultivation are known to us. The 3rd is blurry at best, yet everyone knows how to ascend to become an immortal. The answer is to make churches and mortals believe in you, in the soul, and in your heart. The faith builds up ¡®till they can ascend. This is why churches are so respected - because each one has backing from a different immortal. Even if an immortal dies, no mortal will dare touch a church.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Did you know that when I was 10, I wanted to become a cultivator so badly, but when I got tested, I couldn¡¯t even form a core? I was so depressed that I came here to this very church and prayed. The old priest here saw me and told me that there would always be a way if you tried hard enough. He then asked if I wanted to become a brother here, and since I now had nothing else to do, I agreed. It was only after 10 years that I finally passed the test, believe it or not. Regardless, since a brother and priest have to be cultivators to spread the faith, we get some cool little abilities from our immortal king. The people call these miracles, but the truth is that they¡¯re advanced techniques where god uses his sense as fuel instead of our bodies and KI.¡± That¡¯s it. Oh my god, this is how I can form my core early.
System Quest
Complete Brother training in 4 years. Rewards: Form core before 10th birthday and immortal king abilities (assumed to be weakened). Failure: Unknown.
Damn, another stupid quest! At least this goes along with my plans. I look at the old man dead in the eyes and determinedly say: ¡°Make me a brother in 4 years! Please.¡± Andrew¡¯s look-of-shock even surprises me. ¡°You want to be a brother before your 9th birthday? You must be joking! It took me 10 years of full effort, when I was old enough, to comprehend these lessons! You are 5 years old! You''ll struggle to even pass the physical, and that¡¯s the easy part!¡± he explains with a patronizing gaze. ¡°Old man, I mean grandpa, I am smarter than any 5-year old. Please, please! Let¡¯s do this. I won''t let you down. Imagine being able to say that you trained the youngest brother in history!¡± I plead. I see his eyes go wide with the thought of praise and glory. ¡°Fine. But, you will be treated like anyone else. You will be doing body training 5-10am, lessons 11- 5 pm, and spiritual guidance till midnight. You''ll get 5 hours of sleep a night, and that is it. Don¡¯t let me down, as I can''t promise you¡¯ll survive the test¡± he explains with worry in his eyes.
System Notice
Holy guidance: an immortal has helped you, please remember that favours must be paid back.
Chapter 5: 2 Years Later ¡°Quiz time, young brat,¡± Andrew demands. ¡°Go ahead old man, I''ll pass this time!¡± I say with confidence. I have been completely focused on my studies for the last 2 years; there''s no way I can fail. ¡°Who does this church belong to?¡± he sternly asks. ¡°Immortal King Stormrider,¡± I quickly answer. ¡°Correct.¡± ¡°What are the 5 holly commands set down by him?¡± ¡°First, while it is true that power rules the weak, the powerful should still respect the weak. Life is but a cycle. Second, always help where you can and for the right reasons. Third, never be cruel. Fourth, follow your mind, then your heart, as your heart can lie. Fifth, follow the holy light to redemption in all things.¡± I manage to answer after thinking for a few minutes. ¡°Correct.¡± ¡°Which side is correct: the light sects or the dark sects?¡± ¡°Both are right. To become powerful, you need to walk in both the light and dark.¡± ¡°Correct.¡± After a couple more questions, all of which I correctly answer, Andrew beaming with a huge smile, says: ¡°You passed the physical and mental exams in 2 years. That''s very impressive, Adam.¡± ¡°All that is left is spiritual training. It''s the hardest part, no?¡± I groan. ¡°Yes, it is. I have spoken to a couple of my friends about ways to speed this up, as this is the longest process, but I''m not sure it''s worth it. Nonetheless, the choice is yours.¡± ¡°The quickest way is for you to be locked in a dark room with no light for days, weeks, or possibly months. The darkness will increase your senses, speeding up your spiritual training. The only downside is that you could go crazy, depending on how long it will take.¡± he mutters to me. Damn, this is going to really suck, but there¡¯s a chance it might work, so I have to try. The deadline is getting closer and closer. I can''t wait much longer! ¡°I''ll do it!¡± I say will with more confidence than I feel. I see Andrew¡¯s face go pale; he clearly wasn¡¯t expecting me to agree to such torture.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°I will make sure someone is stationed on the other side to provide meals and let you out if you crack,¡± he says in a deadpan voice. ¡°Just you wait, old man. I''ll prove you wrong, and I will be the youngest brother and cultivator ever!¡± I beam at him. ¡°Follow me then, young brat. I''ll take you to the basement,¡± he says while getting up. As we walk through the church, I notice that it seems more empty than usual and it is definitely quieter. I have never been down in the basement, so I am not sure what to expect. As we walk through the main hall, I notice Andrew walking towards one of the large tapestries, and, as he moves it to the side, I notice a dark pathway leading down. How have I never noticed that in all my games of hide-and-seek with Jess? As we walk down the dark stairwell, I start coughing from the amount of dust in the air. I try to wave my hand around just to get a clear breath, but Andrew sees me and clicks his fingers. Suddenly, all the dust is gone, even the stonework looks polished and clean. ¡°How did you do that?¡± I shout at him. He turns around and just winks at me. After about 5 minutes, we reach the bottom: a large empty room that is covered in boxes and barrels. On the left wall, there is a metal door bolted shut. We ignore all the boxes and barrels and move towards the metal door in a thick silence. I''ve never had this kind of feeling on Earth; it''s exciting. I must push through and sense KI! ¡°Adam, are you sure about this? As I said, this could make you go crazy?¡± he says worriedly. ¡°Old man, don¡¯t worry about me. I can do this. Have faith,¡± I say with a cheeky smile. He opens the large metal door, one bolt at a time. Once he does, I see that the room is pitch black. You can''t even see the walls if there are any, to begin with. I take a few steps in and sit down cross-legged, I relax my body and push my senses to the max. Damn, I don¡¯t sense anything. Well, stupid of me to think I would in just a few seconds! HAHAHA. Okay, it''s time for me to focus. I can do this! Days pass. Apart from my one meal a day that just appears behind me, I spend the time just sensing around the area trying to find KI in the air. It has now been 2 weeks, and I''m still not any closer to sensing anything. The smell in here is terrible, as there is no toilet. Now it has been a month. I cannot sense anything at all. I imagined yesterday that there was a shadowy beast running around in the darkness hunting me until I woke up. The funny thing is I don''t remember falling asleep. 3 months have passed now. I''m seeing things: monsters, angels, even people. I can''t tell which are dreams and which are real. 5 months. I am being chased, but I don''t know what is chasing me, but it surely doesn''t like me. I can feel the sweat running down my back. It wants to kill me. 7 months. I haven''t stopped running in months. There is nowhere for me to hide. I trip - there''s water in front of me! I look down into it and see a reflection, but it isn''t my reflection. Well, that''s not true, it is my old reflection. My old reflection with my dead blue eyes, my dark patches under my eyes, my black short hair, and my rounded face. I remember this face. This is the face of someone dead. Someone I don¡¯t want to be. I couldn''t stand myself before. No, this is my life: my existing life and happy life! I will be better, I will be stronger, and more importantly, I will be me! *Snap* My mind comes back to itself. I''m back in the dark room, but now there are little white specs all around me. It''s KI. I can finally sense KI. I crawl to the door and manage to knock on it twice before collapsing. Then everything goes black. After Effects Chapter 6 Shadows are chasing me. Darkness is all around me. The world is black. My urge to kill is so strong that my body struggles to function. I continue to run with nowhere to hide until I hear a roar that shakes me to my very soul. I freeze. I can''t move and my heart is pounding. I feel breathing on the back on my neck. With huge difficulty, I slowly turn my head to see what awaits me. *BANG* I wake up in a cold sweat with the sunlight burning my eyes. After all, I haven''t seen light in months. I quickly shut my eyes to stop the pain, what was that dream? I can barely remember it. ¡°Oh, my boy, you''re awake! Had me worried there for a bit. Another month and I would have pulled you out myself - even 7 months was too long. Any aftereffects? Did you manage to see KI? Come on, boy, speak to me,¡± Andrew hurriedly spoke. ¡°Old man, give me a moment. This light is killing me! No aftereffects that I know of, and honestly I can''t remember anything after the first few weeks except waking up and being able to sense KI. Give me a moment and let me see if I still can,¡± I say. I calm my mind and slowly open my eyes. I see the world around me with white specs, but after making a mental note to ignore them, my vision goes back to normal. ¡°Old man, I can see and sense KI-¡± before I finish speaking Andrew interrupts. ¡°You can see KI? Boy, are you sure? I have never heard of that before,¡± Andrew asks worriedly. ¡°Yeah, I can. There are little white specs filling the world. What do you feel when you sense KI?¡± I anxiously ask. ¡°I feel little orbs of power. As I can''t see them, I can''t specify the color, but white is pure so it makes sense that they would look like that, I suppose,¡± he mumbles out as if thinking-out-loud. Andrew suddenly snaps out of his thoughts and looks at me seriously, ¡°you have passed all your exams. The last thing for you to do is get the Immortal King''s blessing! I warn you, this is the most dangerous part. If he finds you unworthy or takes too much of an interest in you, things can get messy. Anyway, these are problems for another day. You need plenty of sleep, food, and time to relax before you complete the final step. Find me when you''re ready."Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. I watch Andrew leave and lay back down. As I am about to fall back asleep there is a knocking on the door. ¡°Come in," I shout. Jess walks in with a big smile on her face and excitedly says, ¡°little brat, I''m glad you''re okay. I was so worried when grandpa told me what you were doing. You are so reckless for one so young! What''s your big rush, anyway? You are so smart and have all the time in the world! Why are you doing such crazy things now?¡± She ends up shouting the last part and breaks down in tears. I feel my heart pull at me when I hear her say all this. That''s when I notice that she thinks of me as family while I''ve been treating everyone like strangers. I don''t want to fall back into my old patterns of being alone. Jess practically raised me. I sit up and do something I never thought I would do: I hug Jess out of my own free will. ¡°Jess, what I am about to tell you is a secret. When I was born, I was given a mission by the Immortal King, which is why time is an issue,¡± I lie to her. I want to tell the truth, but I also don''t want her to think I''m crazy. I''ll tell her when I''m older and can explain it better. ¡°You''re a chosen one,¡± Jess shouts and looks at me in shock. Why do I feel like my lie has made things worse? Eugh! ¡°What is a chosen one, Jess? And please, keep your voice down! I haven''t told anyone,¡± I hiss at her. ¡°Sometimes, I forget how young you are and how little knowledge you have of the outside world. Well, a chosen one is someone the Immortal King has chosen to complete a task on the mortal planes. There are never more than 3 chosens every 1000 years. They all become immortals because the Immortal King guides them. However, there''s always some backlash from the heavens since chosens defy the mortal world. So, for each new chosen there''s an increasingly devastating punishment from the heavens,¡± Jess looks at me worried as she tells me everything she knows. Wait, might I really be a chosen? My soul was changed and reborn by the Immortal King. The only difference is that he hasn''t asked me to do anything. Wait, yes he did! He said something about gathering information. Hold on, there were 7 of us, but if all 7 of us have been reborn, then that''s 7 chosens, not even including the 3 every 100 years. Oh no, this can''t end well! I quickly distract myself from all thoughts regarding this and play dumb before I have a major panic attack. ¡°So, are chosens viewed as bad or good?¡± I asked worriedly. ¡°Chosens are viewed as geniuses to most, but some would kill them before their power grows to stop heaven''s wrath. It''s safer if you don''t tell anyone else about being chosen,¡± Jess tells me. Jess gets ups and walks towards the door. ¡°Get some rest,¡± she says as she leaves. I lay back down and my thoughts are all over the place. Yet, because my mind is so mentally burnt-out due to the past few months, I quickly fall asleep. All I see are shadows¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­.. Chapter 7: The Test ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re ready, Adam? There''s no turning back once you go through the door. If the Immortal King judges you unworthy, he may just kill you,¡± Andrew asks worriedly. Andrew moves a marble statue to show a hidden door behind. It is a typical wooden door with a normal handle. I was expecting more, not sure what, but just more. I think through all the choices I¡¯ve made up until this point and clench my fists. This system may help me or may hinder me, but best to pass any quests than fail. I''m sure the consequences will be terrible if I fail. This system is made by an Immortal King, after all. I look directly at Andrew and determined to finish this, I say, ¡°I''m ready, old man. The Immortal King will love me,¡± I laugh at him and shoot him a wink while reaching for the door handle. *Slap* ¡°Ouch,¡± I shout, pulling my hand back, ¡°why did you slap my hand, old man?¡± I groan at him. ¡°You''re rushing into it, and you don¡¯t even know what to do once you enter! Boy, take a step back, take a breath, and listen to me. Once you enter that room, you''ll see a statue. What you need to do is stare at the crystal within it, trying to sense KI. Once you do, you''ll need to mentally say: "Storms are the balance of destructive elements. The one that rides them is the master of said elements. Praise the Immortal King Stormrider!" Once you have spoken this phrase, the Immortal King will judge your soul. Now go ahead, young one,¡± Andrew says as he bows to the door. I take a breath to calm myself. ¡°I''m ready,¡± I mutter to myself and approach the door once again. As I enter the room, I¡¯m surprised by how unnatural it seems. There doesn¡¯t seem to be any walls, just a floating wooden door and a blurry statue with crystal blue eyes. I firm my resolve, take a step closer, then begin staring at the blue eyes. I try to focus on sensing KI, but as I look around, I notice there''s not a single spec of KI in this room, apart from the statue. It looks like a solid beam of KI, glowing so brightly so as to hurt to look at. I look back towards the eyes and notice that there are blue specs inside the eyes. I''ve never seen blue KI before. The old man said white KI makes sense as that''s a pure colour, but the KI in the eyes is clearly blue. I focus harder and finally mentally say, ¡°storms are the balance of destructive elements. The one that rides them is the master of said elements. Praise the Immortal King Stormrider!" I freeze. My whole body is locked up so that I can¡¯t move. I feel a formless weight pushing down on me. It searches my mind, going through my memories of yesterday, then last year, then 5 years ago. It''s getting faster and faster. F*** what about my past life? The other Immortal King? What if they''re enemies and he thinks I¡¯m in his favor or debt? ¡°Well, well, well, look what we have here,¡± a booming force shouts through me. He talks to my soul the same way the other Immortal King spoke to me. It feels weird, like listening to someone talk underwater, but the sound is clear and understandable.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡°Don¡¯t be getting distracted, young one. It looks like you have the honour of meeting 3 dark Immortal Kings before your 9th birthday. Well, you¡¯re only 8 in this world, aren¡¯t you? But that doesn¡¯t matter. You were a child in your other world compared to you now, anyway. So, that¡¯s what happened to that planet. Guess I¡¯m going to have to report it to higher-ups, but that¡¯s none of your concern. First, let me tell you, you''re fucked, just royally screwed,¡± he starts laughing after dropping that bombshell on me. ¡°Oh, Immortal King, please explain what''s going on? What do you mean 3 immortal kings? I''ve only met you and soul destroyer? What do you mean fucked?¡± I say out loud, trying to keep my voice from cracking in fear. ¡°Ah, since a little bit of my soul called me to the mortal plane, I guess I may as well explain some things to you. Let''s call it a favor, one I will be collecting. First, you met the Immortal King of Insanity when you went crazy. He cultivates through nightmares and by tricking people into thinking they''re sane. Then, at the worst possible time when they''re least expecting it, he flicks the switch and boom! You''re crazy! Second, it looks like you¡¯re a test subject for the old soulster. If you ever see him again, big if there, call him soulster. It''s just so damn funny to watch his reaction. Sorry, went a bit off-topic there. So, yeah, it looks like the system and stats were his inventions, so he probably wants to collect all the information you learn. He''ll wait till your strong enough and absorb everything, knowing him. As for the royally screwed part, it''s that you can''t leave here without becoming a brother and me accepting you. You, who clearly has no faith in me or anyone else. Not only that, but you even offend the other Immortal Kings. Thus, as a neutral god, it is in my best interest to just kill you and save you all the pain and suffering in your path,¡± he tells me in a matter-of-fact tone like he''s doing a chore. ¡°WAIT!¡± I shout, ¡°hear me out, your name is Stormrider. That means you¡¯re related to storms. Well, storms are unpredictable. So, killing me would be an issue to them since it would be predictable, but helping me would be unpredictable. Imagine how annoyed the other gods will be when their plans fuck up and they don''t even know why!¡± ¡°What you say has some logic in it, and the thought does entertain me. But, what¡¯s in it for me? Why should I put this amount effort in for what to me a is an ant, even if it''s a very smart ant?¡± He asks. ¡°At any time and any place, I¡¯ll do 3 favors for you, so long as they don¡¯t involve hurting myself or anyone I care about,¡± I plead. ¡°Swear on your soul that you, Adam, will complete 3 tasks for me, no matter what, as long as it doesn¡¯t hurt you or your loved ones. Meanwhile, I, Stormrider, will do you 3 favors. Explaining all this will count as the first. The second favor will be to keep you sane till you reach the 4th stage in cultivation, where you should be able to learn to control the madness, and the 3rd favor will be that for 1000 years, I will protect you as you try to reach the Immortal King realm. If you do make it that far, the soulster won''t touch you. Just don''t give him a reason to look for you till you reach the Immortal Knight realm. Do you swear?¡± he asks. ¡°I swear!¡± I quickly reply. ¡°I swear,¡± he intones. I feel a burning sensation on my index finger. I look down and notice I have a black ring burnt onto my skin. Oh fuck, this is more serious than I thought. Seems like swearing on your soul is a big deal. Well, I meant what I said, anyway. ¡°You might want to buy some gloves unless you do want people to know you have a soul contract with an immortal. I will say that it likely will cause more problems than it solves! Anyway, young one, time to form your core,¡± he explains. I watch as a stream of KI rushes towards me from the statue. I feel my body tense up as it flows through my skin and straight into the pit of my chest, where it forms a round ball the size of a tennis ball. It starts to spin fast and faster until finally locking in place. ¡°Goodbye, young one.¡± Before I can reply, the room changes. I find myself standing the a stone room, but with a lifeless statue. It has no KI. That is so weird! Oh, wait, the quest. System Open.
Quest completed: Unlock Core before 10th birthday
Reward: 500 points
Quest completed: Complete Brother training in 4 years.
Reward: Core Formed, Lightning step ability learned, 5 stat points to be placed.
Chapter 8: System

Cultivation System
System is now active. Applying stats and unlocking shops and abilities.
¡°AHHHH!¡± I scream while the pain shoots through me. I fall to my knees and struggle towards to door. What¡¯s going on? Why does my body feel like it¡¯s on fire? I need help! ¡°Old man, I need help. Come quick!¡± I shout while dragging myself towards the door. My vison is starting to blur, but I don¡¯t want to be stuck in the room any longer then I have to. I¡¯m lucky I¡¯m still alive, and I don¡¯t want to push my luck! ¡°Andrew!¡± I shout again while gritting my teeth in pain. I crawl to the door, but the handle is too high for me to reach while stuck on my knees. I feel the fire rushing though my body. Oh no, it¡¯s heading towards my head! Oh, f***, this going to hurt. I quickly stand up, fighting through the pain. I manage to grab the handle and push down. As I do this, the pain reaches my brain. Everything goes dark.
Cultivation System
Stats Applied
The system alert wakes me up, and I notice I¡¯m now in my room. Oh f***, that is what that pain is? I don¡¯t feel much different though, I should try sensing KI while no one is in my room to bother me. As I change my focus towards KI, the world lights up like a beacon. If what I could see before was a cup of water, now I can see a lake worth of KI. The specs are now closer to the size of golf balls. Holly s***, so much KI! This is unbelievable. Wait, now that I am KI refiner, I should be able to draw it in. I focus on pulling the KI closer, making it go through my hand, run down my arm, through my chest, and finally into my core. The process seems slow and a lot of KI escapes before it gets to my core. Seems like I will need to work on my control if I want to cultivate efficiently. I watch a bug fly in though the small window. I observe its every detail. As I focus more, I feel time around me slow. I can see the details of the wings, even the tiny muscles pushing and pulling. Wow, what the hell was that? I need to be careful with that. As I get up and walk towards the door, I trip on a step and end up launching myself. I tightly grip onto the door¡¯s handle to catch my balance and it snaps off. Oh right, my increased speed and strength stats. Crap, I can¡¯t leave the room till I get used to my new body or people will know what¡¯s up. Wow, that¡¯s sensible, seems like my intelligence went up too. I spend the rest of the day running around my room, doing push ups, sits ups, and various other exercises to control my body and push it to its limit as well. Even after 5 hours of exercising, I don¡¯t feel the slightest bit tired. I had to tell Andrew I was not feeling well when he came and checked on me. He left with a worried look.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Seems like all my stats have helped me be the strongest 8-year-old ever! Hmm, what about my affinities?
Cultivation System
Quest: Reach KI Refining level 5 to unlock your affinities. Reward: 200p
Cultivation System Alert
Your cultivation has been restricted to level 1 till your 10th birthday.
Stupid system! What¡¯s the point of a head start quest if you then restrict progress? Ugh, better look at the shop.
Cultivation System Shop (level 1 KI refiner)
Cultivation Manuals Abilities Pills Items More (please search for requested items)
Guess I¡¯ll look at the manuals first.
Cultivation Manuals ¨C Points 1000
200 ¨C Godly foundation Level 1 (increases KI storage, expands KI routes in body, increases mind strength) 200 ¨C Lightning sacred body arts ¨C level 1 (infuses lighting in the KI before refining your core. Increases endurance and speed.) 200 ¨C Space and time mind arts ¨C level 1 (unknown) System recommends these 3. Please choose 1. Level system explanation: Level 1 = KI refining stage Level 2 = Core refining stage And so on.
Damn, it¡¯s so hard to choose. I want all 3 of them. Wait, I might have a possibly brilliant or dumb idea. System, load crafting system.
Crafting system
Please add items then click craft. Item 1. _____________ Item 2. _____________ Item 3. _____________ Item 4. _____________ Please click here to craft (100p per craft)
Hahaha, I love the easy method! System, buy all recommend cultivation manuals. System: Purchase complete. Total points left: 400p System, place all manuals into the crafting system and craft for me. System: Crafting complete. Total points left: 300p
Item
Unique Art (please name) - increases KI storage, expands KI routes in body, increases mind and strength, infuses lighting into KI before refining your core, increases endurance and speed, creates a storage area 5m by 5m inside your body that can store anything in a time frozen state. Once you reach level 5 KI refining, you can generate another core with space and time KI.
That¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about! Gambling always pays out. Well, at least sometimes. System, load abilities.
Abilities
Lightning step ¨C Owned Mastery 1 ¨C 50 (1 point of mastery is worth 100 points) Basic Swords ¨C 100 points 1 ¨C 5 Basic Spear ¨C 100 points 1 - 5 Basic daggers ¨C 100 points 1 ¨C 5 Due to your KI refining level, the system recommends these.
Damn, wanted some cool spells and abilities! Wishful thinking, I guess. Well, I¡¯ve always wanted use daggers, so I¡¯ll go with them. 200 points in lightning step and 100 in daggers please, system! System: Purchased. 0 points left System, stats please.
Stats (5 stats to place)
Strength ¨C 10
Agility ¨C 15 Hyper focus ¨C 5
Intelligence ¨C 17 Spiritual Sense ¨C 6
Endurance 10
Guess I gained 1 in spiritual sense for learning to sense KI on my own. System, 3 in intelligence and 2 in spiritual sense, please. System: Stats Placed. No stats left.
Stats
Strength ¨C 10
Agility ¨C 15 Hyper focus ¨C 5
Intelligence ¨C 20 ¡°Alert: intelligence has met the hidden condition and opened sub-categories.¡± Spiritual Sense ¨C 8 Split mind - 0
Endurance 10
Oh, I¡¯ll have to check out what ¡°split mind is¡± when I get more points.
System Alert
Shutting down body to implant all knowledge.
Chapter 9: Cultivating Shadows are all around me, chasing me, circling me, trying to kill me. I wake with a start. Another nightmare. This is getting out of hand. *Knock Kock* ¡°Come in,¡± I shout. The door opens, revealing Andrew and Jess. ¡°It seems you are now a brother, congrats!¡± Andrew tells me while clapping. ¡°It''s not fair that girls can¡¯t be brothers. Ugh,¡± Jess moans. ¡°You can always be a sister in a city church,¡± Andrew says, giving her a condemnatory look. ¡°Wait, everyone''s gone!¡± I say, shocked. ¡°Yes, my boy, I''ve sent everyone away due to the beast horde invasion that is coming. It may take 3 years to come, but the village is done for better or worse. But, since the town is going to be converted into a military town, so it likely is for the best. I''m not so worried about you, as you will pass the test on your 10th birthday and get chosen for my sect. But Jess here refuses to leave,¡± Andrew says. ¡°Wait, this is a lot to process. What''s a beast horde? What''s a military town? And I thought no one would touch a church!¡± I shoot out. ¡°Slow it down! A beast horde is a group of beasts that have cores. Normally only KI refining levels of 1 through 9, but there are hundreds of them. A military town is something the light sects came up with. They send all the KI refiners there to get basic combat practice without needing to care about rules," Andrew explains.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°So, if I join a light sect I can come back and help?¡± I ask. ¡°I guess, but I don¡¯t want you to. I want you to live your life and push forward,¡± Andrew tells me. ¡°Well, I''m not going,¡± Jess stamps her foot and runs out of the room. ¡°What am I going to do with her?¡± Andrew huffs. ¡°Grandpa, I''ll help protect the church and my home. You can''t change my mind now,¡± I determinedly say. ¡°Today''s youth is so short-sighted. Do as you wish. You''re now a brother and can make your own choices,¡± Andrew says dejectedly and walks out. When I was on earth, I never cared about anything. I''m not making the same mistakes here! Time to start cultivating. I sense the KI around me. The manual says I need to pull it through both my feet, up my legs, around my core, through my arms and head, then back to my core. 10 times. So, I begin. I do it slowly at first, pulling the KI towards my feet and as it enters my body, I compress it to stop it from escaping. I push it up towards my core and let it cycle through the process once more. While holding the KI, I split the stream in half, with each running through each arm to then recombine in my head. Finally, it heads back down to my core, beginning to fill it. I continue to do this for 3 hours until I feel my mind aching. It seems that after 3 hours of work my core is a quarter filled. Also, my KI feels a little more refined and easier to control. Not bad for a few hours'' work. I get up, go into the bathroom, get washed up, and then get dressed before going to hunt down Andrew. After looking for a few minutes, I find him in the kitchen making himself a cup of tea. He sees me enter and points at a cup, I shake my head. ¡°Old man, I want some daggers to practice with. They can be wooden if need be. A teacher wouldn''t hurt either.¡± ¡°Hm, guess you do need to know how to use a weapon, and you are a bit young for a sword. We have a hunter in town that uses daggers and a bow. I¡¯m sure he can teach the basics. I''ll also ask the blacksmith to make a basic one that can hold KI, and a wooden one to train with. I don''t recommend using KI while training, as overpowering an enemy only works when you''re much stronger. When you''re fighting against equals, in terms of KI, what you''ll need is skill and power. I''ll ask Kevin to come around tomorrow and get you started,¡± Andrew instructs me. ¡°Grandpa, can you make sure there a ring at the bottom of each dagger, please?¡± I ask. ¡°That''s a strange request, but okay, I can do that,¡± Andrew says before going back to his tea. I leave and head towards the garden. Time to learn how to lightning step. Suddenly, I shoot forward with a buzz coming from my feet, blasting through the door. Just from thinking about my skill, I end up at least 10 meters away, with a wood door smashed against the tree in front of me. Damn, that was close. I could have been that door! Okay, so just thinking the name of skills activates them. Good to know. The garden is large with 1 big oak tree in the middle, and the rest is grass planted in a square shape being walled off by a wooden fence. I focus on a stretch of lawn about 5 steps in front of me and think ''lightning step''. I shoot forward to where I was focusing, managing to only slightly lose my balance. I try again, but this time I look about 10 steps in front of me. I feel the back of my legs burn this time as I move forward 10 steps in less than a second. Okay, so my limit is 3 times in a row. Any more and I''ll rip my hamstrings. Guess improving endurance will increase the level of this skill as well. I can move 20 feet at a time almost instantly, and it takes about 1 hour before my legs heal on their own. I think after a few months of practice, I''ll be able to fully control this. Chapter 10: Training ¡°Adam, come here and meet Peter! He is our local hunter,¡± Andrew shouts. I lift my head from a book I''m reading and see the old man with a stick-thin middle-aged man. I observe him as I walk towards them. He is wearing light green trousers, a dark green tunic, and a brownish cloak. The bottom half of his face is covered with a dark brown beard that matches his eyes and long shaggy hair. If I didn¡¯t know better, I would think he was homeless. ¡°Nice to meet you, Peter. My name is Adam and I''ll be under your instruction,¡± I say as I bow to him. ¡°This one has manners, it seems. Must have raised him right! I just hope you haven¡¯t raised him soft,¡± Peters says with a smirk. ¡°You will see,¡± Andrew says, also smirking, ¡°catch, Adam.¡± I catch a pair of wooden daggers with loops at the end. ¡°The real ones will be done in a week, but I won¡¯t let you have them till Peter approves that you won''t cut off your own fingers,¡± Adam strictly tells me. ¡°Thanks, old man,¡± I say while inspecting the daggers. They are about 12-inches long and curve towards the tip. They''re also strangely heavy for wood. ¡°HAHA. Kid, you won''t be using them yet, anyway. I need to get you in shape first,¡± Peters says while chuckling. I cast a doubtful eye over Peter''s frame. Peter smirks and takes me out to the garden while Andrew wonders off. In front of me is an obstacle course that seems to have appeared from nowhere. How did I not hear this being made in the garden?If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°This is going to be fun! Haven¡¯t tortured - oops, I mean trained - a young one in a long time,¡± he says, winking at me. ¡°The start line is over there to your left. From there, you will sprint to the first log, then balance atop it while keeping a quick pace. Next, there''ll be 5 logs at increasing heights - climb the first log and jump from log-to-log till you get to the rope. Afterward, slide down the rope and crawl under the netting nearby the swinging logs. Run through the logs without getting hit by them. Finally, you''ll arrive at the wall. Climb it, but keep in mind that the grips are in constant motion. The rules are simple: if you stop, you start again; if you fall, you start again; if you get hit by a log, you start again,¡± Peter explains, far too enthusiastically. This shouldn¡¯t be too hard, should it? ¡°I¡¯m ready,¡± I tell Peter. I run to the first long, only using half my real speed to avoid suspicion. When my foot touches the log, it starts to turn due to not being fixed to the ground. I go flying, my foot sliding one way and my body sliding the other. I land face-first in the wet mud. I groan as I sit up and look over to Peter, laughing so much he''s in tears. ¡°Evil douche bag,¡± I mutter under my breath as I stand up and brush myself off. I go back to the start, focus, and start running again. When I approach the log, I quickly step on its left side, and while it spins I place my right foot on the right side, lightly pushing the log to the left then right, trying to keep a quick pace. Doing this, the log remains balanced, and I easily make it to the end without stopping. I quickly climb the first log only to notice that all the other logs are much higher up than they seemed on the ground. Without stopping, I jump towards the lowest log with just over ? of my full strength. I shoot up and I still can''t reach the log. As I fall, I panic thinking I¡¯m going to hurt myself, but when I do hit the ground, I notice there are huge leaf piles at the base of each log to break my fall. At least he isn¡¯t a complete ass, I think to myself. ¡°Wow, decent jump, kid, but there is an easier way,¡± he says with a hint of mystery. I get up, brush myself down, and start again. The first log is easy now. Without pause, I jump to a log on my left. Then, planting my feet against the bark, I push upwards towards a smaller log. I go up flying and catch the end of the next log. I repeat the same for the remaining logs, but I start to feel out of breath and struggle to go on. Consequently, I quickly lose my balance on the rope and fall to the ground. ¡°Kid, take few minutes to rest,¡± Peter shouts. I walk towards Peter and sit down next to him, catching my breath. ¡°Why are you not using KI? It''s impressive that you got this far without it, but I didn¡¯t plan on making you do it KI-free till you could at least complete it every time with KI,¡± Peter says confused. Wait, that''s right - I can use KI like that! Stupid system helps me out but doesn¡¯t teach me how to properly use it. ¡°How did you know I wasn''t using KI when Andrew is the only KI user?¡± I ask. ¡°That¡¯s a long story. All you need to know is that I used to have a core and now I don¡¯t,¡± Peter says with a sad look in his eyes. ¡°Anyway, brat, use the KI in your body, and you''ll feel like you have more energy than ever,¡± Peter instructs me. I flood my body with KI and feel like I''ve just had a full night''s sleep. Wow, this is amazing! Peter smirks and tells me, ¡°why don''t you try again now?¡± Chapter 11: Training 2 It took a week. A whole week just to complete the course once! Managing KI is barely harder than breathing but running out of KI feels worse than suffocating. ¡°Well done. You will complete this course once in the morning, then you will train with daggers, then train stealth in the afternoon, and finally complete the course once again at night,¡± said Peter. And that¡¯s when training hell began! *2 weeks later* Flooding my system with KI, I see Peter lunging forward with a wooden dagger in his right hand. I drop down to one knee and use my left foot to push myself forward, activating my Hyper Focus. The world slows down, and I see Peter''s hand pull back the dagger while his free left-hand stays for defense. I push my right foot down, slowly twist, and lunge at him. Just before my wooden blade reaches his skin, his right-hand twists with the dagger, and he manages to counter to my blow. Expecting this, I use momentum to spin around him, and with my right hand, I place my thumb in the wooden loop, spin the blade around so I¡¯m holding it in a reverse knife grip, and go for his back. He quickly spins to try to counter me, but it¡¯s too late, I make contact. I drop to the floor panting, trying to catch my breath. ¡°I¡¯m impressed. 2 weeks and you already managed to hit me. That move at the end - spinning the blade to get a better grip - was pure genius!¡± Peter exclaims. System Alert Basic Daggers ¨C level 4 System Quest Reach Basic Daggers Level 5 in 1 week Reward ¨C 200p Failure ¨C lose 100p Stupid quest system. ¡°Peter, can we go again?¡± I ask. ¡°Sure, Brat,¡± he replies. We continued to spar until it started to get dark. I didn¡¯t manage to get another hit, but Peter also didn''t hit me. I could feel myself getting better, but I couldn¡¯t understand how Peter could last this long without KI. ¡°Okay, go once around the course, then we''ll go get some food,¡± Peter instructs me. I nod and approach the course. I focus and shoot forward. This time it only takes me 30 minutes to complete the course, but I can feel my core nearly empty. After eating dinner with Peter, I head to my room and start cultivating. I notice that pushing my core to its limit increased the quantity of KI it could hold.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. I feel my KI ready to upgrade a level, but regardless of what I do, I can¡¯t push through. It must be another limit the system has imposed. So, if my cultivation level is at its limit and I still have over a year till my 10th birthday, I''ve got to focus on other skills. I suppose that means training my dagger, stealth, and thunder-step ability. The last one must remain a secret, though. I''m still surprised that I unlocked that skill with pure will and practice, but it will take more of those to use it well. I should go out now, while it''s dark, and practice my stealth. I manage to get outside without anyone noticing me, but that''s not exactly an achievement for someone who lives in an empty church. I travel over what they call a road here (essentially a muddy track), approaching a small town. It looks completely empty, apart from a lonely 2 story building in the center of town - the tavern. I decide that that would be a perfect place to test my stealth skills. As I approach the wooden building, I notice that the windows are all steamy to a point where I couldn¡¯t see through them. I can hear the merriment of all the people inside and the sound of music. I pull the hood up on my black cloak and circle the building to find the back door. I look through the keyhole, making sure no one is on the other side. Then, I crack the door open and slide into the room, keeping to the shadows. I peek around the side and see a busy chef focused on his pans. I crouch and use the ball of my feet to step, gently placing one after the other. I successfully sneak past him. System Alert Stealth level up Stealth ¨C 2/5 Moving forward I approach a hallway that leads to the main floor and a staircase going up to the rooms. I decide to sneak up the stairs. They lightly creak with each step, making me cringe. At the top, there are 5 rooms, all with the door shut. I move towards the first door and place my ear against it to listen. Nothing but snoring. I repeat this, checking each room. As I am about to go back downstairs, I hear someone approaching the stairs. Panicking, I quickly open the door to the room which had no sounds and shut it gently. I look around and see a small bed to the left, a small wardrobe to the right, and a chamber pot at the end of the bed that stunk. I push my ear against the door and hear footsteps approaching. I rush to the window, only to notice that it''s locked and the key is missing. I quickly hide under the bed and slow my breathing. I hear the door open then shut. ¡°One second, let me set a silence ward,¡± I hear a gruff voice say. I feel a wave of air compress around us; it''s a weird feeling, but I keep myself calm and completely still. ¡°There, done. So, how far are we from the light sect''s main city?¡± The gruff one says as he sits down on the bed. ¡°Still a few weeks but we should get there before the yearly exams. We need to make sure we ''nap a few young ones this year. The sect doesn¡¯t have many disciples left,¡± a high-pitched female voice explains. ¡°Well, it''s a shame that they all die in the mine before reaching KI refining level 5, but no way am I working in there. Let the wastes die for all I care,¡± the gruff one tells the woman. I think these are dark sect members. I need to make sure they don¡¯t notice me. ¡°Hmph, we all start in the mine. It builds character,¡± the female says before sitting down in a crossed-legged position on the floor, looking directly at me. Chapter 12: The Mines ¡°What do we have here?¡± The girl asks with her eyebrows half raised. I hear the man get out of bed and look under it. They''re both wearing black robes with a black snake emblem encircled by some pulsing purple lightning. If I stared for too long at the emblem, it seemed as if the snake was moving. The girl had long black hair, bright blue eyes, and looked to be in her mid-20¡¯s with a defined look. The guy seemed to be in his early 20¡¯s with short brown hair, green eyes, and sharp features. I panic, trying to think of what I can do. I settle on distracting them to try to escape. ¡°Good afternoon, lady and gentleman. I was just cleaning under the bed when you entered. I was about to come out, but once you began talking about wards, I was too frightened to leave,¡± I lie while pulling myself out from under the bed. As I stand up, I bow to the sect members and slowly walk back to the door while they are distracted. ¡°Don¡¯t look like no cleaner I have ever seen before. Where is your cloth?¡± The gruff man asks me with skepticism. Crap. ''Lightning step,'' I command but am sent backward. ''Hyper focus,'' I try this time, and everything successfully slows down around me while I move at stupidly fast speeds. I rotate my body mid-air to face the door. Once I get to the door, I try to open it but it''s locked. I drop to my feet as I feel a pressure on me that makes it hard to breathe. I feel my body giving way to this pressure. ¡°A Cultivator! And look how young you are. Oh my, what a find,¡± the girl jumps up and down excitedly, ¡°he is going to be worth a fortune in sect points when we sell him to the guild mines.¡± The gruff man looks excited, thinking about all the sect points he would earn. ¡°Breathe. I can''t breathe!¡± I groan out, struggling to stay on my knees. ¡°Oops! Sorry, my fault. Anyway, let me formally welcome you to the purple adder sect. You''re going to love it,¡± she says, the pressure disappearing. ¡°What? Wait, I don¡¯t want to join a dark sect. I''m not even 10!¡± I reject instantly. ¡°AHAHHA! Boy, you have no choice. You think anyone wants to be a part of the dark sects when they start? We force you, then you end up loving it. That¡¯s how this works,¡± the gruff man replies.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Anyway, we need to go to the capital before heading back, so to make sure you don¡¯t run away we are going to put you in a holding idol. Don¡¯t be scared. When you next wake up, we will be back at the sect and you won''t even notice time go by,¡± she says will an evil grin, pulling out an idol of a human man with blank details. Crap, if I want to get away, I need to do something now. I grab my wooden dagger and lightning-step towards the girl, ready to break the idol. Before I get halfway, however, a pressure slams me to the ground. ¡°Neat trick you have there, but we are in the core refining realm. We can predict your every move,¡± the gruff man laughs. By the time I blink, he''s in front of me. ¡°This speed is still slow to me,¡± he gloats. ¡°The idol''s ready, just keep him still,¡± the girl instructs him. ¡°Wait, stop! Don¡¯t do this!¡± I beg before being sucked into nothingness. ¡°Welcome, new recruits. I am sect elder Ash. I know you are all confused and not sure what''s going on. I honestly get it, I feel for you kids, I really do, but the first lesson you must learn is that the strong control the weak. At the moment you are all weak but don¡¯t worry, we are going to change that. We are going to make some of you into amazing cultivators. The reason I say ''some'' is because the world is a harsh place - to survive, you will need to be strong, to become strong, you will need to win fights, and to win fights, you must make someone lose. All of you will be entering the mine behind me. Inside there are 6 sections: those of you that are KI Refining level 1, go to section 1, and KI refining 2 go to 2, and so on and so forth until section 5. Section 6 is a hub of sorts - there you''ll find an arena and a shop. In the arena, you can place bets or fight for rewards. You must mine a total of 10 sprit crystals per day, if you mine more than 10, you can use or sell them. We have a shop in section 6 where you can spend them on food, weapons, or even some pills & techniques. If you fail to meet 10 sprit stones a day, you will be crippled and left in the wild. If you only earn 10 you won¡¯t be able to afford food. Killing is not allowed unless a challenge is sent along with a witness, in which case the winner will keep the loser''s belongings. Now, what you all want to know: to leave you must get to KI refining level 6. At that point, you''ll become a full disciple of the sect and will be treated as such. Other ways to leave are winning 50 fights in a row in the arena or to die. Overall, you can''t leave the sect and go home alive till you reach core refining level 6 and sign a sect contract. Good luck,¡± the voice finished speaking in my head. Suddenly the man standing at the cave¡¯s entrance had disappeared. I look around and notice 9 other kids, all about 10 or 11 years old and just as confused as I am. Shit, what have I gotten myself into? How long have I been in the idol? It feels like summer. Has it already been 3 months, or am I so far away from the church that seasons are different? Damn, guess I won''t be finding out anytime soon. ¡°Follow me into the cave. I''ll take you to your rooms,¡± a voice announces. Chapter 13: Punishment My room is a tiny square, only decorated with a mattress and a hole in the corner, which I assume is to be used as a toilet. Guess I have nothing better to do till morning than cultivate. As I close my eyes, I notice a red flash. I focus on it and an alert appears. System Quest You have failed to reach level 5 in daggers and 100 points have been removed from your account. The new current total is -100. As punishment, the system has been disabled for 1 year. ¡°That¡¯s harsh. Come on,¡± I mutter to myself. Focusing on cultivating once again, I calm my mind and try to replenish the KI that I used the night of the fight with the two sect members. After a few hours, I calm down and manage to slowly refill the KI in my core. ¡°Wake up, recruits! It''s time to get to work,¡± a voice wakes me. I hurry to get dressed, then leave my tiny room, entering a stone hallway. I look to the left and see a queue forming in front of a man holding various pickaxes. I feel a tap on my shoulder and see a kid maybe a year or two older than me. He smiles politely and, in a surprisingly high-pitched voice, asks me, ¡°first day ay?¡± I nod back at him and introduce myself as Adam. ¡°Nice meet you. Just call me Squeaky - everyone else does due to my voice,¡± he says with a big grin on his face. ¡°So, what''s the deal here? Any tips?¡± I ask trying to be polite and not let my worry show. ¡°It''s simple, really. First come first served, only fight if you have no choice, and never offend anyone of a higher KI. A lot of people use higher KI users as protectors, which comes at a cost. Also, don¡¯t offend someone unless you''re sure they have no backing. Lastly, you need at least 15 stones a day to live comfortably,¡± he explains. ¡°Thanks for your help,¡± I wrap up the convo as I''m given a pickaxe and sent to my area. The hallway opens up into a wide clearing which is lit by blue crystals on the wall. The area I''m assigned to has 5 other people. They all eye me carefully as I find an empty location and start hitting around a crystal. The impact jars my arms and someone to my left laughs.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. A female voice says ¡°put one hand at the bottom and one about halfway on the handle. Bring it over your head and then let weight and gravity do all the work. By the way, this info cost you your first sprit stone. You''re welcome,¡± she says with a cheeky smile. I try it the way she recommends, and oh-my-god it is so much easier. That was so worth the cost. I finally get my first crystal after 30 minutes of chipping away the surrounding stone. ¡°Hey, catch,¡± I say, throwing the crystal to the girl. I get my first good look at her. She looks around 11 years old, with green eyes, short blue hair, rosy cheeks from all the mining, and a pointy nose. Looking at her again, I realize she''s an elf. ¡°You¡¯re an elf?¡± I ask excitedly. ¡°Yeah, what of it?¡± she answers back with a bit of bite in her tone. ¡°Nothing. It''s just my first time meeting an elf. I didn¡¯t mean to offend you,¡± I sincerely reply. ¡°Oh, well, guess that¡¯s okay then. We can talk more later if you want to, but right now we need to hurry or we won''t meet the target,¡± she replies while turning back to her work. By the end of the day, I have 11 stones. As I¡¯m picking up all my stuff, a voice echoes: ¡°1 sprit stone per person tax." Looking at the entrance, I see 3 heavily built men. More closely inspecting them, I notice they''re all KI level 1. As each person exits, they give them the stone. Why are they all paying? If I pay, I won''t be able to afford any food. No food means I won¡¯t work as well tomorrow. No, I just can¡¯t afford to pay them. The one in the middle holds out the bag as I walk past them. I ignore him and keep walking until I feel a force on my shoulders push me down. He''s weak, I think I can take him on. I grab his hand, twist it, and push him away from me. He takes a step back and I continue to walk, only to be interrupted by a metal point pushing against my back. ¡°Let¡¯s not make this messy. The rules say I can¡¯t kill you, but I can do a lot worse while keeping you alive. Now hand over the ston-¡± before he finishes speaking I activate lightning-step and shoot forward. I twist so I am facing him and the other guys, and while looking at the shock in their faces, I active lightning-step again. While I''m shooting forward, I activate hyper-focus. I aim my fist at his chest. He is sent flying. You can hear the snapping of bones. Worried that I killed him, I check on him and find him groaning. Thank god for that. Not long after, I notice his bag filled with stones is on the floor. I grab them and active lighting-step for the last time, escaping. The same man that handed out the pickaxes in the morning is now collecting them and the daily tax. ¡°You''re late,¡± he says in a stern voice. ¡°My apologies,¡± I say, grabbing 11 stones from the white bag and placing them in his, with the extra one offered as an apology. His attitude completely changes. ¡°No worries younger brother. It was no issue at all to wait,¡± he says in a cheerful tone before packing everything up and walking away. I head to my room to count how many stones I have. A grand total of forty. ¡°A very profitable day,¡± I say to myself before heading towards section 6. It seems like I''ll need a new dagger. Chapter 14: Section 6 I follow the stony hallways, trying to find section 6. After about 20 minutes, I come across a wide area with a pit in the middle. There is a stairway going down into this pit and along the walls of the stairway are shops. From the top of the stairs, I can see 6 floors, each branching into tunnels. In the middle of the bottom floor is the arena. It looks similar to the Colosseum in Rome from my old life. As I start walking down the stairs to look for a place to eat and find a new dagger, I see two people I recognise. It''s the girl from the mines and squeaky - I''m still not over how stupid that nickname is. ¡°Hey guys, how¡¯s it going?¡± I politely ask. ¡°Speak of the devil and he shall appear,¡± the girl responds. ¡°I can''t believe that you stole sprit stones from the big 3. HAHA, serves them right. You need to watch your back now though,¡± Squeaky warns me. ¡°Haha, they can try to come after me, but I''ll just take more of their stones if they do,¡± I tell them as we continue to walk down the stairs while gazing at the various shops. ¡°Be careful. Hamish, their leader, has a rank 3 sponsor and the stones you stole were for him. You need to think before you act,¡± the girl lectures me. ¡°I''m sure I''ll be fine. I have a few tricks; I just need to get myself a decent dagger set and a decent meal. Anyway, my name is Adam. What is yours?¡± I ask. ¡°Just call me Izzy. My elf name can¡¯t be translated into your tongue,¡± she smugly says. I roll my eyes. ¡°So, Izzy, Squeak, what is the best place for me to get a dagger and a good place for us to eat something? My treat, in regard to the food,¡± I announce. ¡°Oh, if that¡¯s the case, I know the perfect place for some food follow me,¡± Squeaky replies and runs off. Izzy and I look at each other, smile, then run after him. Around the third floor, we find a 2-story building built-in to the wall with a frying pan as the logo. ¡°This is it. After you,¡± Squeaky says. As I approach the door, the doorman says ¡°1 spirt stone per person for entry.¡± ¡°Bit expensive,¡± I say while looking at squeak. ¡°Trust me, it''ll be worth it,¡± he says with a hint of excitement.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Here you go, sir, and take 1 as a tip,¡± I say as I politely give an extra stone. ¡°Thank you, sir. Please enter. Amy take them to the second floor. If anyone bothers you, tell them to come talk to me,¡± he shouts inside. Always pays well to tip the doormen and serving staff. ¡°Adam, the second floor is normally only for KI levels 3 to 5,¡± Izzy whispers. As enter, I notice how the bottom floor seems to be packed, with only a couple of free tables. ¡°Follow me, sirs and madam. This way,¡± the waitress'' relaxing voice says. Hearing her voice, I feel the stress melt away from me. As we climb the stairs, we see the top is separated into private rooms. Amy leads us to a room on the left. In it, there''s a large table with soft pillows and furs surrounding it, giving it a relaxing vibe. ¡°Please take a seat. Since this is your first time here and you''re on the second floor, may I give some recommendations?¡± She asks. ¡°By all means, go ahead,¡± I smile at her and I feel myself relax more. "I recommend that you all get the Grizzle steak, with sides, and a glass of sprit water. Bit too young for the wine I¡¯m afraid." ¡°Erm, how much is this going to cost me?¡± I ask nervously. ¡°5 Spirt stones per person,¡± she tells me with a smile Wow, 15?! I''m pretty sure there are cheaper places. Maybe I shouldn''t offer to pay ever again after this... But, I don¡¯t want my new friends to think I go back on my word. ¡°Perfect, that¡¯s fine¡±, I say and begin pulling out the stones before she interrupts me. ¡°Payment is after you''re finished eating,¡± she says with a smile. She exits the room with the orders she had recommended, leaving us 3 in awkward silence. ¡°So, what¡¯s so special about this place?¡± I ask to break the silence. ¡°Just wait and see,¡± Squeaky replies. ¡°I have never been here, so I''m not sure myself, but I have heard good things,¡± Izzy tells me. ¡°So, how did you guys end up here?¡± I ask, despite worrying it might be a rude question. ¡°Isn¡¯t it the same for you? Kidnapped during the test once you turn 10?¡± Squeaky asks while looking at me questioningly. Izzy looks at me with the same expression. ¡°Well, I¡¯m... erm... only 8. Or 9 - I got trapped in an idol and I''m still not sure how many months I was in there. When was the last 10-year test?¡± ¡°You started to cultivate before you were 10 years old?!¡± Izzy shouts. I quickly lean against the table and slam my hand over her mouth to keep her quiet. ¡°Yes, but shhh, I don¡¯t need any extra attention,¡± I whisper. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, these rooms are warded,¡± Squeak says. ¡°It''s been 3 months since the last test if that helps.¡± As Izzy is speaking, the server enters the room and places 3 dishes in front of us. ¡°Please enjoy,¡± she says before leaving. The steak looks amazing - pink in the middle with a crispy char around the edge, and the side of salad looks fresh and crispy. "Guess I am 9 now. Damn, time''s going fast." I take a bite. Oh my god, I can''t even begin to describe the steak''s flavours. It tastes like heaven if heaven could be tasted. After I finish eating the meal, I notice extra KI swirling in my system and that my friends must be cultivating, given their closed eyes. As I begin cultivating, I feel my KI build-up as it strengthens. The barrier the system had in place was no longer there. I focus my mind and start pulling the surrounding KI in. ¡°Yes. KI refining level 2!¡± I shout out. I open my eyes and see the shocked look on Izzy and Squeak. I guess when the system disabled itself, it also disabled the restrictions. As I cycle the KI around my body, I feel myself getting stronger and my muscles getting more defined. Suddenly, a door slams open and the doorman is standing there again with a bright smile on his face. ¡°Not even 10 and already KI refining level 2! We''re going to be good friends,¡± he announces.